History of Brittany
This article concerns the History of Brittany. For other information on the region, see Brittany.
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Palaeolithic
Only a few Palaeolithic sites are known from Britanny, like the rock shelter of Perros-Guirec near Rochworn. The only cave site known so far is Roc'h Toul in a sandstone promontory near Guiclan (Finistère). The cave contained about 200 artifacts and was dated to the late Magdalenian by de Mortillet. Because of the presence of points with curved backs, it is now connected with the epipalaeolithic Azilian. Other Azilian sites include Parc-an-Plenen and Enez Guennoc.
Mesolithic
The best-known mesolithic sites from Brittany are the cemeteries on the islands of Hoëdic (10 graves) and Téviec (9 graves) in Morbihan. The collective graves are placed in shell middens without any particular order. Some graves show evidence of postmortal manipulations of the bones. There are single burials and empty graves (cenotaphs) as well. The graves are covered with stones, a hearth or antlers forming a sort of dome. Rich funeral gifts, flint tools, engraved bones, shell ornaments and ochre demonstrate the affluence of these hunter-gatherers, or rather fisher-gatherers. Certain shells are sex-specific. In Teviec there are stone cist graves. The bones of an infant have been postmortally ornamented with striations.
The corresponding settlements consist of shell middens. A radiocarbon date of 4625 (uncal.) for Hoëdic places it in the 6th Millennium BC cal, rather late in the Mesolithic sequence, and indeed there are some indications of contact with agricultural societies to the East. Their economy was based on marine resources. Recently, a number of accelerator dates have been published for Hoëdic.
In Beg an Dorchenn in Plomeur (Finistère), domestic dog and cattle were already present, in Dissignac, micoliths were associated with pollen evidence for clearances.
Some scholars speculate that megalithic graves might go back to the Mesolithic, but this contention is difficult to prove, as most structures have been reused. Large numbers of Microliths have been found under the chambered tomb of Dissignac.
Neolithic
The westernmost extensions of the Villeneuve-Saint-Germain culture, based on a linearbandkeramic tradition are found in eastern Brittany (Le Haut Meé). The use of schist from the eastern edge of the Breton Massif for bracelets in settlements in the Paris Bassin attests to widespread trade. A bracelet of polished stone found in a grave in the VSG-settlement of Jablines Les-Longues-Raies was made of amphibolite from the island of Groix in southern Morbihan, prooves trade with local Mesolithic communities.
The early passage graves date to between 4000 and 3000 bc, followed by evolved passage graves between 300-2500 bc. In the later part of the Neolithic, allées couvertes and simple dolmens became the predominant type of burial monument. Some passage graves are decorated with incised lines, of which Gavrinis is probably the best known example.
Some scholars see an influence of the central European Linearbandkeramic culture in the finds from the longmounds of Mané Ty Ec and Mané Pochat er Ieu (Morbihan), but this should rather be connected to the la Hoguette tradition, ultimately of Cardial extraction. Carn-pottery, thin walled round based deep bowls, often with applied crescents (croissants) is typical for early chambered tombs. It is found in Finistère, Morbihan and Loire-Atlantique.
Middle Neolithic settlements include La Motte, La Butte-aux-Pierres and Lannic. They mainly concentrate on the Coast. The pottery shows Chasséen influences. Bowls are still round-bottomed, but with s-shaped profiles and vertically perforated lugs. Some geometric decoration occurs, but is rather rare. Vase-supports of Chassey-type are found as well, the Breton variety has been named the Er Lannic type and is characterised by triangular perforations, while the examples found on the Channel Islands show circular perforations. Other local pottery types include Castellic grooved ware, Souc'h-ware, and Colpo-type ware.
Stone circles like Er Lannic (a double oval of standing stones and a ditch) sometimes contain settlement material and pottery of Chasséen-type. By the middle of the 3rd century, the Kerugou, upper and lower Conguel and Rosmeur/Croh Collé types became preponderant.
SOM-influenced pottery in central Brittany includes the Quessoy and Crec'h Quille/Le Melus types. Collared bottles can be related to the Kragenflaschenhorizont of the late TBK. Since the late 3rd millennium, Grand-Pressigny flint was imported in some quantity. Some type of Breton axes were exported. For example, dolerite axes made at Plussulien have been found in Britain. The dolmen Mané-Lud at Locmariaquer is thought to show a picture of a boat.
Beaker material is known from some settlement sites, for example Kastel Koz, other beakers were found in rivers. Marine beakers predominate, AOC-decoration is found in Southern Brittany. Small gold plaques are known from beaker graves, in Kerouaren a diadem has been found. There is no indication that the beaker people already exploited the Armorican metal deposits.
Bronze age
The early Bronze age culture is commonly believed to have grown out of Beaker roots, with some Wessex and Unetice influence. In the early Bronze age, rich individual graves are found under barrows, which indicates a complete change of the social structure. The Breton barrows have been divided into two series by Cogné and Guiot, the first dating from 1900-1600 bc, the second to 1600-1400 bc. The barrows of the first series can be up to 50 m in diameter and 6 m high. They are found in Western Brittany, along the coast, the Blavet river and at the southern border of the Monts d'Arrée. A few examples have been recorded from Normandy. The barrows contain a small cairn over a stone cist, wooden coffin or dry stone structure containing the burial. Often the chambers are covered by large stone slabs. Sometimes roofed mortuary houses are found, for example at St. Jude en Bourbriac. The stone cists can be quite large, up to 4 m long, but always only contain an single body. Grave gifts include amber beads, silver cups, gold-hilted daggers (Saint Adrien), tanged flint arrowheads and stone axes. Because of these rich grave goods, J. Briard sees them as burials of warrior-priests. Certainly not everybody was buried in this way, but nothing is known of "commoner-burials", especially as bones are not normally preserved in the acidic soils of Brittany. The gold-pin decoration of the dagger hilts and the amber-beads show close connection to the Wessex-culture, but there are technical differences. The barrow of Kernonen en Plouvorn, Finistère, provides a good example of a rich burial of the first series.
The barrows of the second series are a bit smaller and show a more inland-distribution. They do not normally contain metal, but numerous pottery vessels, high biconical vessels, sometimes with a geometric decoration under the rim, or single four-handled undecorated pots. There seems to be no division of the grave goods by gender.
Glass-beads are found in some graves, for example at Mez-Nabat, Plouhinec (Finistère).
A number of radiocarbon-dates are known from the barrows:
| name of site | dept. | Lab number | date | standard deviation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plouvorn, Kernonen | Finistère | Gif-805 | 1960 | 120 |
| Melrand, Saint-Fiacre | Finistère | Gif-863 | 1950 | 135 |
| Goarem Goasven | Finistère | Gif-1313 | 1850 | 130 |
| Saint Evarzec, Kerhuel | Finistère | Gif-482 | 1630 | 200 |
| Kervigny | Finistère | Gif-2481 | 1560 | 100 |
| Ligollenec, Berrien | Finistère | Gif-1866 | 1550 | 120 |
| Kerno en Ploudariel | Finistère | Gif-2421 | 1500 | 100 |
| Plouvorn, Kernonen | Finistère | Gif-1149 | 1480 | 120 |
| Cleger, Kervelerin | Finistère | Gsy-86 | 1345 | 150 |
| Guidel, Tuchenn Cruguel | Finistère | Gif-235 | 1320 | 200 |
| Cleder, Le Helen | Finistère | Gif-748 | 1300 | 115 |
| Plouzévédé, Ar Réunic | Finistère | Gif-1113 | 1250 | 120 |
| Plouvorn, Kernonen | Finistère | Gif-806 | 1250 | 120 |
| Plouzévédé, Ar Réunic | Finistère | Gif-1115 | 1210 | 120 |
| Plouvorn, Kernonen | Finistère | Gif-807 | 1200 | 120 |
| Goarem Goasven | Finistère | Gif-1314 | 1050 | 130 |
| Courcoury | Charente Maritime | Gif-2347 | 850 | 70 |
| Plouhinec, Lescongar | Finistère | Gif-2347 | 850 | 70 |
| Crée de Carat | Finistère | GrN-1973 | 700 | 60 |
The later part of the early bronze age saw the beginning of the exploitation of the Armorican tin deposits. Numerous hoards contain tools and weapons, but metalwork is rarely found in burials or settlements, which makes the synchronisation of hoards and settlements difficult. The Tréboul-group of hoards is thought to be contemporaneous with the second series barrows. Decorated spear-heads, flanged axes, palstaves and long daggers are typical. The hoard from Bignan (Morbihan) contained only bronze jewellery.
Coastal salterns are known from the late Bronze Age onwards as well, for example at Curnic, Guissény.
Pollen analysis shows that widespread clearance of the beech forests took place in the early bronze age. Cereal pollen have been found at Porsguen, Plouescat, for example. Domestic animals included sheep, goats and cattle, but hunting may have still provided a lot of meat. La Roche, Videlles, has still 60% wild animals among the animal bones, but it is not clear if this is typical. Carbonised remains of naked wheat and barley have been found at Plounéour-Trez, hazelnuts and acorns were eaten as well. Flint still formed an important part of the tool inventory.
Some standing stones (Menhirs) and stone alignments date to the early bronze age, for example the Grand Menhir Brisé at Locmariaquer.
The later Bronze age sees only a slight Urnfield influence. Hoards are numerous. The Saint-Brieuc-des-Iffs phase marks the beginnings of the Atlantic bronze industries. It is succeeded by the carp's-tongue complex, found in Britain and Portugal as well.
The square-socketed armorican axes turn up in hoards in great numbers. At Maure-de-Bretagne, over 4000 axes have been found, ca. 800 at Tréhou and Loudéac.
The axes are mainly unused and may have been a form of ingot of primitive currency. They contain a high amount of lead or consist of pure lead and are distributed from the Iberian Peninsula to eastern Germany, Ireland and Southern Britain, with some pieces from Scotland, Poland and Switzerland. Different regional types are known: Brandivy in Morbihan, Dahouet and Plurien on the North coast, Tréhou in Finistère. The miniature types of Maure-de-Bretagne, Ille-et-Villaine and Couville are typical of Upper Brittany.
Copper was imported from Spain as plano-convex ingots, as found in the hoard of Penfoul, Landelau.
Settlements have rarely been excavated, Ploubazlanec at the mouth of the Trieux is an example of a fortified village.
Iron Age
A variety of tribes are mentioned in Roman sources, like the Veneti, Armoricani, Osismii, Namnetes and Coriosolites. Strabo and Poseidonius describe the Armoricani as belonging to the Belgae.
Armorican gold coins have been widely exported and are even found in the Rhineland.
Salterns are widespread in Northern Armorica, for example at Trégor, Ebihens and Enez Vihan near Pleumeur-Bodou (Côtes-d'Armor) and the island of Yoc'h near Landuvez (Finistère) of late La Tene date.
An estimated 40-55 kg of salt were per oven were produced at Ebihens. Each oven was about 2 m long. The site dates to the end of the early La Tene or the middle La Téne period. Numerous briquetage-remains have been found. At Tregor, boudins de Calage (hand-bricks) were the typical form of briquetage, between 2,5 and 15 cm long and with a diameter between 4-7 cm. At the salterns at Landrellec and Enez Vihan at Pleumeur-Bodou the remains of rectangular ovens have been excavated that are 2,5-3 m long and ca. 1 m wide and constructed of stones and clay. On the Gulf of Morbihan about 50 salterns have been found so far. mainly dating to the final La Téne period.
Roman rule
In 56 BC the area was conquered by the Romans under Julius Caesar. The Venetian notables were killed or sold off as slaves. The Romans called the district Armorica (a Latinisation of a Celtic word meaning "coastal region"), part of the Gallia Lugdunensis province. The modern département of Côtes-d'Armor has taken up the ancient name. After the reforms of Diocletian, it was part of the dioceses Galliarum.
The uprising of the Bagaudae in the 3rd century led to unrest and depopulation, numerous villages were destroyed. Thick layers of black earth in the towns point to urban depopulation as well. The rule of Constantine (307-350) led to a certain renaissance, Numerous coins were minted. At the tractus Armoricanus, new forts were built, for example at Brest, Avranches and Le Yaudet. The Notitia Dignitatum (circa 400AD) mentions a number of local units manning the Tractus armoricanus et nervicanus, for example Mauritanian troops in the territory of the Veneti and Osismii. Frankish laeti were present in Rennes. Christianisation is commonly dated to the late fourth century, but material evidence is rare.
Early Medieval times
Around 500 AD, the Roman troops were withdrawing. Some British authors (Nennius, Gildas) mention Britons fleeing to Armorica to escape the invading Anglo-Saxons and Scoti. These Britons gave the region its current name and contributed to the Breton language, Brezhoneg, a sister language to Welsh and Cornish. (Brittany used to be known in English as Little Britain to distinguish it from Great Britain - the street in London called Little Britain was the location of the embassy of the Duchy of Brittany).
Conan Meriadoc, the mythic founder of the house of Rohan is mentioned by medieval Welsh sources as having led the settlement of Brittany by Welsh mercenaries, who married native women after cutting out their tongues to preserve the purity of their language.
In the early Middle Ages, Brittany was divided into three kingdoms - Domnonia, Cornouaille, and Bro Waroch - which eventually were incorporated into the Duchy of Brittany.
Middle Ages
Bretons took part in the Revolt of 1173-1174 sideing with the rebels against Henry II of England.
The Breton War of Succession was fought 1341-1364.
The Kingdom of France defeated the Breton army in 1488 and the last Duke of independent Brittany was forced to submit to a treaty giving the King of France the right to determine the marriage of the Duke's daughter, the heir to the Duchy. The Duchess Anne was the last independent ruler of the duchy as she was ultimately obliged to marry Louis XII of France. The duchy passed on her death to her daughter Claude, but Claude's husband François I incorporated the duchy into the Kingdom of France in 1532.
Modern Times
Brittany was a hotbed of resistance to the French Revolution and its accompanying anti-clericalism.
Like the rest of the French state, Brittany came under Nazi occupation during the second world war.
Brittany has its own secessionist movement which has experienced varying success at elections.
The removal of Loire-Atlantique, which contains Nantes (the traditional Breton capital) from the Breton region has also been a matter of much controversy.
Sources
- J. Briard, Les depots Bretons et l'age du bronze atlantique (Rennes 1965).
- P.-R. Giot, J. L. Monnier, Les civilisations du Paléolithique supérieur en Armorique. In: H. de Lumley (ed.), La Préhistoire Francaise (Paris 1976) 1311-1314.
- P.-R. Giot et al, Préhistoire de la Bretagne (Rennes 1979).
- P.-R. Giot et al, The British settlement of Brittany (Stroud 2003).
- James Hirbs, The Neolithic of Brittany and Normandy. In Ch. Scarre (ed), Ancient France (Edinburgh), 271-323.